After Rory
by Peppermint Stick
Summary: She changed us all..... Tristan and Rory's relationship, Paris's friendship with both, and how they've all changed since they met Rory. (Stand alone)


I stared down at my desk as the teacher placed the paper on it. I glanced at Rory across the room. She smiled and nodded encouragingly. My eyes fell on Tristan who looked away from Rory to me, smirking, as usual. I looked back down at the paper. Senior year. Creative Writing. Final exam. Last exam of my high school career. Reading the title, I almost had to suppress a laugh, 'What Main Event Of Your High School Career Do You Believe Will Impact You For The Rest Of Your Life?'  
  
Well, if that's not general, then I don't know what is. I remember what has always been said to me: Write about what you know. What do I know? Hm..... Now that's general as well. Don't ask me anything scientific, science was never my strong point. Literature and reading? Now there are some questions I can answer. Geography? Well, maybe, but not my best area. I guess I could start at the top and go from there, huh? Name: Paris Gellar. Date: 5-21-03. Easy enough.   
  
Now, for the hard part. The essay. Let me think, I could write about how being editor of the Franklin has helped me become more organized and given me the skills to run a paper. Or I could tell about being president of my senior class. That was a good one, but not really the direction I wanted this to go. Maybe a more personal level. I could write about my relationship with Jess, how he's in Chilton on a scholarship so we're together everyday. Or I could put into words the hell I went through with Jamie, either would work. Maybe my best friend since kindergarten, Tristan Dugrey, would be a nice topic. Or Rory Gilmore, she's great, one of my best friends. Or, I could write about my two best friends, Tristan Dugrey AND Rory Gilmore.   
  
I chewed on the end of my pen, thinking it over. After a moment, I put the pen to paper, but had to pause. How to word this, so it didn't sound like a cheesy after school special or a soap opera, that was the question. I sat still for a few seconds, then began to write.   
  
*   
  
Now, if you want the real story, then I'll tell you. He wasn't always like this. Confused? Wondering who I'm talking about? Most likely. Tristan Dugrey. My best friend since I can remember, he wasn't always the happy-go lucky guy that he is now. Oh no. He used to be...well, to put it nicely, a player. It's not like he was ever a bad person, he just didn't really care. About, well...anything. At all. He was always the hot guy who everyone envied, and he liked it that way. He's the son of Samuel Dugrey, disgustingly rich business man, who built his empire by branching off of Janlen Dugrey's empire. It's all really head ache causing if you've been around it your whole life. And of course, Tristan was expected to follow in dear old dad's footsteps. Now, see, I've known Tristan, as I said, for forever. And I know that he can't stay cooped up in an office his whole life. It would destroy the golden boy we all know and love, and that would just be...devastating, in a way.  
  
Tristan was dating Summer Norton when Rory came.   
  
Rory. Lorelai Leigh Gilmore. Now there's a story. She came with her natural beauty, love of 80's music, big blue eyes, innocence, long brown hair, and her determination to get where she wanted to go, sweeping the king off his feet. She didn't care what we said or what anyone thought of her. She knew who she was, and it really didn't matter to her if we did or not. Of course they had the normal high school banter, and she played hard to get. Tristan didn't let up. She tried being rude. Tristan didn't stop. Because see, no matter what she did, he always knew what she was thinking, so it was impossible for her to make Tristan go away. I loved it, and I was there every step of the way, watching.   
  
Tristan finally got her to be his friend, and they went to a party. We were Sophomores, and they went to a party I didn't. Rory told me he kissed her, and she kissed him back, I swore that I'd never miss another party.  
  
She introduced me to her best friend, Jess. Now, Jess, like Rory, was from a small town. Actually, he just lived there. He'd grown up in New York. I was spending the night at Rory's house, when this short guy with dark hair ran into the house and locked the door. A few seconds later, this really tall guy with floppy hair ran into the door. That's right, into the door. Apparently, this was Rory's boyfriend, the tall one (they weren't together long after she met Tristan, though). The short one was her best friends. So here I was, a girl who'd never spent the night with a guy other than Tristan, (and that doesn't count because I am scarred for life by the fact that he carried around a pink power ranger action figure until we were in third grade) and we were stuck together for the night because he wouldn't go outside for fear of Dean, Rory's boyfriend. We talked and ended up dating, and still are.   
  
I'll never forget when Tristan sang to Rory. It was hilarious. We were at her sixteenth birthday party, and Tristan just started singing that song from Footloose, since he knew it was her favorite movie. He's paid the DJ to play the music and everything. That was the way to win her heart apparently, because when he asked her out that same day, she accepted. And I'd never seen either one happier. They went out for over a year. Then as all good things do, it came to an end. They hit a rocky patch. A very rocky patch.  
  
Apparently, they'd both cheated on each other, at the same party. That was the closest I think I'll ever come to hell. My two best friends fighting and nothing I could do. One couldn't even bear to look at the other. For over a month, I felt like I was going to rip my hair out. Rory barely went anywhere but home and school, and Tristan went back into his shell. Finally, after weeks, I'd had enough. I locked them in a closet. It wasn't the nicest thing to do, but hey, it worked. They got back together, didn't they?  
  
So by then, it was almost senior year, and they were both head over heels. Again. So here, I was in the same position, my two best friends were dating. And I'd never tell them, but I didn't really mind that much. The summer came and went, we all had our ups and downs, and we started senior year. So here we were, finally, the last leg of high school, and we thought it would never end. But it has. So, here I am, writing my final essay in high school. It's over, and suddenly it's too soon. We all got accepted into almost all schools we applied to, but have decided to go to Princeton, yes, even Rory: the insane Harvard worshipper. Even Jess got in, on a scholarship. I'm actually not sure why we're going to Princeton in the first place. Rory and I had the dream of Harvard. Louise and Henry, two of our friends that got in as well, wanted to go to Yale. And Jess and Madeline had always thought of Brown. And I think we all got accepted to the schools we applied, every Ivy League. Only Tristan had planned on going to Princeton, though. I guess that when it comes down to it, we all just decided that we wanted to stay together, and Princeton was the best place to do that. And I couldn't tell you how or why we formed the group that we did. Louise: the beauty. Madeline: the ditz. Rory: the good girl. Paris: the brain. Jess: the rebel. Tristan: the player. Henry: the gentleman.  
  
But when it comes down to it, I guess that the fact of the matter is, we don't ever get the last word. Fate does. It did with Rory and Tristan, they didn't want to go out. They went from enemies to friends to lovers, and look at them now. She thought he was immature and mean. He thought she was bitchy and conceited. Now, they can barely take their eyes off each other. I give them two years to get married after we graduate Chilton. They'll be married by twenty, oh yeah. And also, with Jess and I. I'm the brain. He's the rebel. I always thought that sort of stuff only happened in movies. The player pins for the virgin: Cruel Intentions. The rebel pins for the brain: Say Anything, I guess. And as for my friends, who they are speaks for itself. I don't think we'd be this close if something out there hadn't wanted us to be.   
  
Gee, that's a lot more than one event, huh? But they're all interconnected. They all lead back to the same source. Rory. She came with her natural beauty, love of 80's music, big blue eyes, innocence, and long brown hair, sweeping the player off his feet. She changed us, all of us.   
  
She taught Louise that you don't always have to wear makeup just to go to the grocery store, and that bad hair days are okay and happen to everyone, it's no reason to hide from the world. She taught Madeline how to apply herself to everything, not just guys and her appearance. She taught me how to have fun and let my hair down. Jess, he learned how to care about his life, and his future. She helped Henry become more outgoing and bold with girls. And Tristan, she taught Tristan how to love, she taught Tristan how to trust. And, my best friend, she taught all of us how to dance in the rain again. We'd forgotten what it was like to be innocent and carefree, jaded by society. But she brought out the best in all of us, now, we might wish upon a star, or actually notice a rainbow, but every time it rains, we go outside, not in. Needless to say, Rory has changed all our lives, for the better. I'm not exactly sure how all of us have changed her life, if we have at all. I've grown to realize one thing: nothing is certain. But I've also grown to know this statement untrue. Because there is one thing I'm certain of. I will always be friends with Rory. All of us will. Because we have all changed. We were all better, after Rory.  
  
*  
  
I leaned back in my chair, flexing my cramped hand. Glancing over at Rory, a smile crossed my face. She really is different. Tristan is right behind her, glancing up every few minuets to make sure she's there and it isn't really a dream. I feel the same way. My life is going really good right now. I sure hope it's not just a dream, and if it is, I hope I never wake up. Louise is at the back of the room. Her hair is pulled up carelessly and she has on only a little eyeliner and some mascara, plus maybe a little eyeshadow. Madeline looks as if she knows what she's doing with this final, like a pro. Jess is actually concentrating, trying his best, I can tell by the way he's writing that he cares. Henry passes a note to the girl behind him, Lane, I think, the one he's liked for months. She reads it and smiles, blushing slightly, it's obvious what question is on it. And I can only guess what I look like, smiling, like I never used to before she came. And my eyes fall again on Rory. She really is innocent. She has no idea how much she's affected us all. But we do, and we'll always remember, we weren't this happy, not before she came, but we all are now, after Rory.  
  
A/N: So, what do you think? Think it's good enough for a stand alone? 


End file.
